Artemis Fowl: Jon Spiro's Revenge
by Torina Archelda
Summary: Ten years after EC, Artemis, Holly, and their daughter, Ebony Fowl, have a seemingly perfect life... Until Jon Spiro breaks out of prison, and comes after Artemis. Will Jon finally get his revenge, or does the LEP have a few surprises in store?
1. The Break In

Okay, before I get yelled at for posting this instead of updating my other stories, this was a Biology project, so I had to do it anyway. Flames welcomed, but please be tactful! R&R please!

Disclaimer: Artemis Fowl © 2004 by Eoin Colfer. Basically, I don't own Artemis, Holly or Butler. Or Jon Spiro, or Mulch Diggums, or Madame Ko. I'm just borrowing them because they made this project a lot easier. I no own, you no sue. But I do own the guy who broke into Fowl Manor! And Ebony is mine, too, as well as Artemis' middle name. Oh, and Q-tips aren't mine, either.

Chapter One: The Break In

The masked figure expertly switched off the final security alarm and slipped into the room. Eyes darting around in search of security cameras, he drew his pistol and took out three before rounding the last one. "Sorry, Fowl," he said, his voice deep, "but you'll have to do better than that."

He held up his gun.

He pulled the trigger.

And the screen went blank.

Artemis Fowl the Second sighed as he finished watching the tape for the seventh time. "Is that all we have to go on, Butler?"

"I'm afraid so, Master Artemis. Can you think of anyone who would be after you because of your previous… Illegal enterprises?"

Artemis sighed and steepled his fingers thoughtfully. "More than I can count, Butler, but as you very well know I have done nothing of the sort in nearly a decade. No, I believe it was merely the allure of the diamond that attracted this criminal's attention. The question is: who was it? No one besides Mulch Diggums has ever penetrated this manor, and that was years ago. The security is much more advanced now." Artemis sighed once more. "Whoever he is, he is not one to be underestimated."

Domovoi Butler gave a curt nod. "I took the liberty of cross-referencing possible culprits on the Interpol site while you were viewing the video stream."

Artemis nodded. "And?"

"I'm afraid the results were most inconclusive."

Artemis raised his eyebrows questioningly, in a manner that clearly said, "explain".

"There were over two thousand results," Butler clarified.

Artemis sighed again and rested his head in his hands. He allowed his mind to drift a moment before returning to his usual demeanor.

"Very well. We have work to do, Butler. Lead on."

The two stood and walked in the direction of the violated room, content in amiable silence.

When they reached the room in question, Artemis pulled two pairs of latex gloves from his pocket, donning one and handing the other to Butler. He then carefully extracted a few plastic bags and a pair of tweezers.

Butler raised his eyebrows, a gesture that his old friend knew to mean, 'why on earth do you have all this in your pockets?!?!?'

Artemis smirked. "Really, Butler," came the light reprimand, "you should know by now that I am always prepared."

Butler sighed and shook his head. Always one step ahead, Master Artemis. His expression darkened. Except for last night. He almost pitied the thief; you don't cross a Fowl, most especially this particular one, and expect to get away with it. Everyone knew of Artemis' not-so-lawful endeavors, and for all anyone knew he was still a cold-hearted criminal. Butler had to scoff at that one, hardened criminal indeed. The man had always possessed a strong sense of conscience, and he had been but a child when he committed the crimes everyone held him responsible for! But that was beside the point. That was everyone's impression of Master Fowl, so why did anyone dare break into the manor? How they managed to do so was an entire other matter in itself.

Artemis' not-so-discreet clearing of his throat awakened Butler from his reverie. Butler blinked, the world coming back into focus, and smiled mentally at the man's raised eyebrow. "Earth to Butler," he said, great amusement in his tone, "Anybody home?"

"My apologies, Master Artemis. I was… thinking."

He nodded. "And have you come to any profitable conclusions?" he asked the manservant.

He sighed in response. "I'm afraid I've only unearthed more questions."

Artemis gave a heavy sigh, the sigh of one who had borne many grievances in their lifetime. "An unfortunate by-product of such an endeavor, I'm afraid." He quickly regained his composure. "Come, Butler. We have detective work to do."

As they stepped to the case the diamond had previously inhabited, Butler placed a halting hand on his employer's shoulder. He was sure Artemis would have already considered it, but he still felt compelled to say something…

"Artemis, wait. If you are the one to examine the clues left by the perpetrator, isn't it quite likely that the police will merely pass the evidence off as fabricated?"

"And what course of action do you suggest, Butler? Ought I to call in the police, say a diamond was stolen from me and ask them to come examine the evidence? Really, Butler, they know all too well of my 'criminal record'. How much do you really think this will hurt the family funds, my friend? Not at all. It won't put even the tiniest dent in the sums I gained from any of the more… unsavory conquests I previously engaged in. They won't bother to send anyone over, as you very well know. No, it is best if we examine the evidence ourselves, and then trick the perpetrator into revealing himself. This is a personal matter, Butler, and commands to be handled as such."

The manservant nodded and stood in silence as Artemis brushed fingerprint powder over the glass cases, but frowned when nothing appeared. Artemis, however, was undaunted, nodding in understanding.

"Master Artemis?" he inquired quizzically.

"It is to be expected," he said, half speaking to himself. He then turned to Butler. "Think about it. If this criminal was skilled enough to break into the manor, do you really think he would have been daft enough to leave fingerprints?"

Butler nodded. It made sense.

"However," said Artemis, a little of the old scheming spark in his eyes, "the nature of the diamond's encasement makes it impossible to remove it while wearing gloves or any other type of protective clothing.

"The added bulk would greatly decrease maneuverability and, consequently, set off the alarms," Butler contributed, beginning to understand his charge's plan.

Artemis smiled. "Exactly. In order to remove the diamond, the culprit must have first removed his gloves. A criminal of this magnitude would not have been foolish enough to allow any fingerprints to land anywhere besides the diamond, but there is a part of the human anatomy that even masterminds cannot get around." Artemis pulled a Petri dish from the seemingly bottomless pockets of his suit and scraped something from the bottom of the container with a Q-tip, smiling happily.

Yes, the old glint was back in his eyes, the look he got whenever he was solving a particularly difficult, to normal people, anyway, puzzle. Despite the fact that he no longer engaged in criminal enterprises, he enjoyed solving problems such as this. He had, until recently, planned dastardly acts, not to execute them, but for the challenge it presented. Holly, however, had discovered them a few weeks before, and a giant misunderstanding had occurred, one that caused a lot of tears on the woman's part and a couple migraines on Artemis'. Eventually his wife had made him promise to stop planning, just in case the police ever found them and misunderstood them, and since then the man had found himself quite bored, especially as Holly and their four year old daughter Ebony were currently on what Holly called a "long overdue and well deserved girls week out", a development that had, until now, severely depressed the former criminal mastermind.

Consequently, it pleased the manservant greatly to see this spark of life back in his employer's eyes.

"What would that be, Master Artemis?" Butler inquired, for his part thoroughly confused.

"Skin on the human body is constantly dying and separating from the upper epidermis," Artemis elaborated. "These skin cells will, hopefully, contain the perpetrator's genetic information."

Domovoi raised his eyebrows. "Hopefully?" the manservant asked. He may have been a military genius and skilled defense artist, but biology was far beyond him.

"About eighty percent of the human population carry their genetic information in all cells of their body, in which case the skin cells we collect will easily prove his guilt."

"And the other twenty percent?" Butler inquired.

Artemis sighed. "The other twenty percent carry their genetic information only in their blood. And as we obviously do not have a blood sample…" He trailed off. "Although there is undoubtedly a higher percent of secretors than non, twenty percent is a great deal of people that could have quite easily broken into the manor. We will simply have to hope, Butler." He sighed and instructed the manservant to mail the sample immediately. "I want this whole mess taken care of before Holly and Ebony get back. It would not do for them to become involved."

Butler nodded. "Very well, Master Artemis." He stood and called up the nearest hospital, asking them if they could do an analysis of the skin cell sample. Upon mentioning that he was Artemis Fowl the Second's manservant, the secretary quickly agreed, and Butler drove up to the hospital and dropped off the sample. He was told that it should be ready in two or three days, and that they would call when the analysis was complete.

Details settled, Domovoi returned to the limo and drove home to inform Artemis of the time table. Artemis nodded once before returning to his microscope. Butler blinked. "Artemis?" he asked.

When the man turned to him, Butler continued. "Why did we give the sample to the hospital if you are going to analyze it yourself?"

"I, for one, sincerely doubt that the court will take my word for it if and when I identify the culprit. The sample was sent to the lab so that we will have scientific, certified proof. If any turns up, that is."

Butler nodded. It was like Artemis to want to do things himself, and also very much like him to be sure he would have judicially recognized proof. Always one step ahead, Master Artemis.

It was also likely that he would be able to recognize the DNA pattern. One of his more recent hobbies had been classifying and identifying the DNA of every criminal he had ever come in contact with, and then some.

He was about to go find his sister and ask her to make them both some long overdue lunch when Artemis gasped. The bodyguard knelt by his side, a worried expression on his face. Despite Madame Ko's teachings, he cared deeply for his charge, who was the closest thing he had ever had to a son.

"Artemis?" he asked hesitantly. "What's wrong?"

The haunted eyes of a frightened young child looked back at him. "It's Jon Spiro, Dom. And if I know him, this won't be his last strike."

Butler felt fear well up inside him, an unfamiliar and unwelcome feeling. It was true, Jon Spiro most likely would be back. The man was clinically insane after all, driven crazy by the incident with the LEP Recon so many years ago. Jon Spiro would be back. And he would be out for Artemis' blood.

Unable to make a court case without solid evidence, they had waited with bated breath until the test results had come in. Unable to identify the genetic code by itself, the lab scientists had done a paternity test at Artemis' suggestion, using Mary and Jacob Spiro as the prospective parents. Sure enough, just as in the Ian Simms case of '88, the coded bands on the slip of paper had matched up, and Jon Spiro was captured and sent to jail on account of theft and jailbreak.

This did nothing, however, to ease Artemis' worries. Spiro had escaped jail once, he could do it again. And with Holly and Ebony coming home soon… Artemis sighed. He would have to tell her. Holly would be upset at being left out of the action, of course, police work was her one true passion, but he knew that in the end her good judgment would win out and she would take Ebony to Haven with her for her safety.

Of course, that wasn't going to stop her from putting up a good fight first.

"Artemis Johanasen Fowl the Second!" Holly cried, her hazel eyes afire with anger, "How dare you expect me to sit back and do nothing while you take on Jon Spiro single-handedly? You know how dangerous he is!"

Artemis sighed, immensely regretting telling her what had happened, especially so soon after she had come home. "Indeed I do, Holly, which is exactly why I want you and Ebony to go stay with either Root or Foaly for a while. It is too risky to have you around, Spiro could attack you as means to get to me."

There were tears in Holly's eyes now. "I won't leave you here, Artemis," she said softly. "I won't."

"Holly," he replied, his tone just as soft, "please. I don't want to see you or Ebony get hurt, and nowhere above ground is safe. Do this for me, Holly," he pleaded. "Please."

Holly, sensing her husband's distress, decided to relent a bit and meet him in the middle, although her proposition wasn't really all that sacrificing, as it was probably something she would have done anyway.

"How about this," she began. "I'll take Ebony to Foaly and ask him to baby-sit her for a while, you know how much he loves her." At Artemis' nod, she continued. "But I'm coming back." She noticed he was about to protest and help up a hand to stop him. "Hear me out, Artemis," she requested firmly. "I can take care of myself, you know that. I'm one of the best Recon officers out there. I can hold my own in nearly any firefight, as I have proven time and again. I can help, Artemis," she reiterated. "You know I can."

"Yes, Holly, I know, but I would never forgive myself if you were hurt."

"Well I won't be, and then you wont have anything to worry about!" she exclaimed.

Artemis sighed once more. Holly wasn't described as the most stubborn elf since Frond himself for nothing. "Very well. But if things get too dangerous you are to leave immediately, understood?"

Holly nodded, well aware that he would not be able to enforce this in the midst of battle.

Artemis, knowing all to well what was running through her mind and realizing he had been fighting a loosing battle from the start, gave in, silently grateful that he wouldn't have to go through this ordeal alone. "All right, then. Let's go see Ebony."

Holly smiled as she linked arms with her husband. "I've missed you," she said softly.

"And I you," he replied. "And I you."

Midnight found the Fowl family silently driving to Tara. They reached the shuttle pod entrance, and Artemis hugged his daughter one last time. They didn't know how long it would be before Spiro was incarcerated, but it was safe to say the girl would be gone for a few months at least.

Ebony looked sadly up at her father. "You're not coming to Haven, daddy?" she asked, even though she already knew the answer.

Artemis smiled. "No, baby, I'm not. Butler and I have to stay here and keep watch for a very bad man who might hurt us."

Ebony looked apprehensive at this, and Artemis quickly covered, "It's all right, sweetie. You're just going to visit Uncle Foaly for a while, while we take care of the bad man, okay?"

She nodded and hugged her father once more before climbing into the shuttle pod with her mother. Holly revved up the engine and the girl smiled, worries temporarily forgotten. Her mother was flying… This would be fun.

Two hours and a couple dozen cups of coffee later, Artemis' nerves were finally calmed as Holly walked through the front door. He had tensed for a moment, at first believing her to be Jon Spiro, but had quickly relaxed as he saw that it was his wife entering the manor.

"Okay," she said, sitting down at the dining room table, "Ebony's safe in Haven. What's the plan?

Artemis, it was true, had a plan in almost every situation, and an ingenious one at that. This, however, was one of the times when people's unwavering confidence in his abilities caused them to be disappointed… "I don't know, Holly," he said softly. "I really don't know." At that moment, he looked very much like the child he had left behind at such a very young age, lost, alone… Even afraid.

Holly laid a reassuring hand on his shoulder. "It's okay, Artemis," she said softly, although inside she was fighting the urge not to cry, as her only hope had been in his having a plan, "We'll find a way. We will. I promise."

Artemis sighed. "But what if Jon attacks before then?"

Holly steeled her expression, the determination clear in her eyes. "Trust me," she told him. "We'll be ready."

It turned out that, for security reasons, Holly had been able to talk the Council into letting them hire an entire Retrieval squad for an indefinite period of time. It would be their job to take out Spiro if he came, until a better plan was devised, of course, and they were even toying with the idea of placing him in fairy prison… Maybe even Howlers' Peak. After all, there was small likelihood he would escape from there… But then again, there was also little chance of the council agreeing to such a thing. They were miffed enough that Artemis, Juliet, and Butler knew of the People, they weren't going to let Jon down there by a long shot, incarcerated or not.

The question was, then, where could he go? He had already proved he could escape from human prison, and as fairy prison was clearly out of the question…

Artemis was drawn from his reverie by the beeping of his laptop. He lifted the screen and clicked "accept video transmission", curious. Who would wish to speak with him at such a late hour?

He waited a moment for the visualization screen to appear, and then did a double-take. "Foaly?" he exclaimed. "Why-"

"No time, Fowl," Foaly interrupted, "just listen. I'm sending Corporal Kelp up with some prototype technology. You'll have to return it once Spiro is caught, mind, but it ought to aid you in your plans."

Artemis winced mentally and allowed Foaly to keep talking, skating over the fact that he didn't have a plan.

"He should be there in fifteen minutes or so. Just take the stuff and send him right back, he won't be able to explain any of it to you, trust me. I think you'll be able to figure out most of it on your own, and what you can't, Holly will probably recognize. I'll check back in about an hour to see how everything is coming along. Or will you have decided to sleep tonight by then?"

Artemis laughed. "I think that's out of the question tonight, Foaly. Although you never know, Holly might order me to bed in a couple of hours. She's normally a lot more adamant about sleeping, she lectures me a lot on how bad for you it is to not sleep at least eight hours a night, and it's fairly obvious I'm not going to get that tonight. I was a night owl as a child, sometimes I still am, I can handle a night or two without sleep. But you know how Holly is."

Foaly laughed. "Yea… Well, sorry Mud Boy, but I have to go now. I would actually like to sleep for once…"

Artemis chuckled as well. "Very well, Foaly. It was nice talking to you. Until next time…"

"Yes, until then. Over and out, Fowl."

Artemis went downstairs and retrieved the equipment from Grub Kelp and placed it in his store room for closer examination the next morning. It was better to sleep now and not get reamed out by Holly the next morning… He laid down, pulled the covers over his head, and fell into the blissful oblivion that was sleep.

Several hours later, Artemis, Holly, Butler, Juliet, and the Retrieval squad were awakened by a deafening blast.

They raced downstairs, and were startled to see a fire burning in the room under Holly and Artemis'. The worst part, however, was the state of the room- it was in shambles. All the furniture was blown to pieces, the coffee table was charred black, and the draperies were still burning intensely.

Artemis slowly walked over to the couch, where the explosion seemed to have originated from, while Butler doused the fire with an extinguisher. He picked up the small blasting cap, confirming his suspicions. He had thought the fire to be too small to be caused by a homemade explosive device, it had most likely been caused by a much larger explosive, such as TNT or RDX, and now he was certain. Primer charges weren't necessary for small scale bombs. That meant Jon was getting some serious money from somewhere. But how? He was on the run- he couldn't just walk into a bank and make a withdrawal. But then where was his money coming from? And, more importantly, who?

This train of thought was leading him nowhere. He needed to compile a mental list of all the people he knew who held a grudge against him and had the funds to supply Jon' madness. He could think of quite a few actually, but he doubted Jon would have approached them. They, therefore, much have approached Jon himself… But if the police had been unable to find him, how had this mysterious supplier? Who on earth had the technology to find an escaped criminal such as Jon without the police knowing?

His mental listing suddenly got much shorter, and he looked at the last two people there, a feeling of dread growing in the pit of his stomach. One of the names on the list was of a man who had been dead for quite some time, and the other a woman prison. Neither capable of assisting Spiro. But the woman…

Artemis gulped audibly and prepared himself, for he knew the worst was yet to come. He had a feeling that he knew exactly who on, or rather under, the earth was responsible for assisting Jon.

Okay, what does everyone think? Remember, I had to do this, so no one say I shouldn't have started another story! Working on chapter two now, this project is due in a week and a half! Ack! Bye! Please review!

Torina


	2. Opal's Return

Sorry everyone, I wasn't able to put in anywhere near as much fluff as I wanted because this IS a project… Anyways, here's chappie two! Hope you like! Review response time!

renee- Thanks for being my first reviewer! Well, nothing really… I tried to write a story with my own OCs, but it didn't work because I tried too hard to develop them and lost the scientific aspect. So I borrowed Arty and crew and added in the information from our book. I think I like the way it's turning out… But that's just me. Hope you like this next chapter!

I should be Studying- Thanks! Happy New Year to you, too! Lol, I like Gregory.,. Did Holly make fun of him for it in your fic? Cuz she did in my other one… Like the penname too, it goes well with my situation right now… Cuz review responses are hardly productive. But oh well… I wish I could read your fic, but I can't read things that are rated R… I'm 14. Sorry…  And please check out some of my Inuyasha fics! Anyway, thanks for reviewing and hope you like this chappie!

VampirePeaches- Yea, it was kind of obvious… But look on the bright side, that means I didn't leave a cliffie, did I? Sorry I didn't explain, but that's what I did when I started my first try on this project, I created characters and tried to develop and explain them too much. So how about this- I finish writing this, and then I write a prequel to this story with the explanations. Actually, depending on how Together Forever ends up, it could be considered the prequel… What do you think? Anyway, story time, please R&R!

almostinsane- Thanks! Updating!

Li- OMG you're hilarious! See you Tuesday, silly…

SnuHiFoot- BAKA! It's Snuffhifoot, no Snuhifoot! lol whatever… Thanks for reviewing but any SUGGESTIONS? Anyways, you coming Tuesday? Ttyl, lylas!

Disclaimer: I don't own Bill Nye… He's a person for goodness sake! I would I go about owning him? looks thoughtful Hm… For anything else, see chapter one, and don't sic the lawyers on me!

Chapter Two: Opal's Return

Artemis smiled softly as a very disgruntled Foaly signed on. "Fowl!" he exclaimed irritably, "What do you want? I just talked to you a few hours ago!" His expression quickly transformed into a worried one. "Spiro didn't attack you, did he?" he asked, concern permeating his tone.

Artemis nodded wearily. "Yes, he set off a bomb in the room below mine and Holly's. That, however, isn't the problem."

"Not the problem!" he cried. "Not the problem? What under the earth are you on about, Fowl? The most dangerous man in the country, barring yourself, of course, just set off a bomb in your manor! Mind telling me what could be worse?" he ranted, his efforts rendering him slightly out of breath.

Artemis sat calmly throughout the centaur's tirade. He was, after all, used to Holly's anger; Foaly's was nothing in comparison. When angered, the elf gave Commander Root a run for his money…

"The bomb was clearly not handmade; it would have taken a large sum of money to procure it. Money an escaped convict would not possess."

"Point being?" Foaly asked, clearly angry at Artemis' lack of concern for the situation.

"Point being," Artemis continued, "that I believe Opal Koboi is not as imprisoned as she would like us to believe."

"Opal?" he said softly. "But… But…" Suddenly, Foaly's anger overcame his shock. "It can't be Opal! She's in Howler's Peak! Under high security! No one's broken out of there in thousands of years! And I would have been informed if she had broken out!"

Artemis knew Foaly's anger was clouding his good judgment; it wasn't really that hard to create a duplicate of oneself. And knowing Opal, it wasn't beneath her intelligence to find the needed materials, even in a place such as Howler's Peak goblin prison.

"Then I think it's time we paid Miss Koboi a visit."

The security guard looked nervously over his shoulder at the people he was leading towards the high-security cell. It wasn't every day that someone of his stature led such important people around- this day would mark the future of his career. If the guests were pleased, he would most likely get a promotion. If he displeased them, however… He shuddered at the thought. His career would be ruined. Besides, it wasn't a good idea to anger the commander, and he had heard every rumor about Fowl. The captain and the centaur didn't look too happy, either. He paused for a moment, and was treated to a cold glare on the manservant's part. Nope, definitely not a good idea to get them angry…

He continued hurriedly to the cell, avoiding eye contact with the group. They reached the cell in question, and the guard nodded upon seeing the commander, stepping aside to allow them passage. The name tag of the guard they had been following flashed in the lamplight, proudly proclaiming his name to be Ed. He hurriedly pulled his key ring from his pocket, trying to look important and unafraid. After all, not just anyone got an entrance key to the most heavily guarded cell under the earth.

He was about to push the door open when Foaly rudely pushed past him. Holly gave him an apologetic look and opened her mouth as if to say something, but quickly changed her mind. It wasn't as if she could say to the poor man, "Sorry, but it's his ex-rival you've got in this cell, and we think she's out to kill us all. So sorry for my colleague's behavior, but we're all a bit on edge right now." That would do wonders for security. Not to mention Root would have her head.

She followed Foaly into the cell and watched carefully as Artemis examined Opal with a device similar to a medical tricorder. A series of numbers appeared on the small screen, and Artemis frowned. He stood and said to Root, "Radio the Council. This isn't Opal Koboi."

The four sat in the Ops booth, viewing the security tapes Howler's Peak had sent them. The door to Opal's cell opened, and a security guard entered with a tray of food. He bent down to place the tray on the floor, and she promptly shot him in the back with a clearly homemade laser she had drawn from her pocket. Not as powerful as a Neutrino, but it was effective enough for the job she required of it. The man fell to the floor, stunned. They watched in amazement as she proceeded to pull out a miniature holographic projector and produced a solid copy of herself, and then pulled yet another device from her pocket. She aimed it at the man and then trained it on herself, and she transformed into a carbon copy of the unconscious security guard. Another gadget rendered the man invisible, and she grabbed his keys and left the room.

Foaly sighed. "Leave it to Opal to find the materials to make stuff like that in a place like Howler's Peak." His good sense had finally overcome his anger, and he was putting all of his energy into finding out what had happened between Opal and Spiro.

Suddenly the screen flashed, and a smiling head appeared on the screen. Their expressions darkened. "Speak of the devil…" Foaly muttered.

"Koboi!" Root shouted. "Do you want another life sentence in prison? Get back here NOW!"

Opal giggled. "Come on now, Julius, that wouldn't be any fun, now would it?"

The commander growled. "You have about thirty seconds before I send all my people after you, pixie."

Opal gasped in pretend abashment. "Commander, is that a threat?"

"You bet it is," he replied, spitting out a fungus cigar.

The deranged fairy grinned. "Well, if you're going to be like that about it… Would you like to make a deal?"

None of the occupants of the room liked her expression.

"What kind of deal?" he asked suspiciously. "I can't think of anything you could possibly come up with that would convince us to release you."

Opal smirked. "Nothing?" she inquired. "Very well… I suppose I'll just feed her to a troll then." With these cryptic words, she reached down and pulled Ebony into view. The assembled party gasped, and Holly and Artemis turned to Foaly, who had turned white.

"I… I'm sorry…" he said softly. "I left her with Trouble. I thought he could take care of her. I can't imagine what she could have done to-"

"What," the pixie interrupted, "him?" She held up the limp form of Trouble Kelp and smiled at their expressions. "Wasn't that hard to knock him out, I simply snuck up behind him with a baseball bat. Pitiful, really, how untrained all your officers are…"

Root turned red. "Shut it, Koboi! Kelp was one of my best officers!"

Opal raised her eyebrows. "Then I would hate to see your rookies. And what is it with you and calling everyone by their last names?"

Root spluttered, she had asked a question he didn't have an answer to. Had the situation not been so serious, Artemis, Holly, and Foaly would have burst out laughing. This was a question they had often wondered about themselves.

"What's wrong, commander?" Opal asked in a honey-sweet tone. "Lava tiger got your tongue?"

Root bristled. "Look, Koboi, give Kelp and Fowl back. NOW!"

"Oh, of course," she replied, still in that fake, sugary tone, "But there area a few… Conditions."

Artemis suddenly felt lightheaded. That was nearly exactly what he had said to the commander about Holly so many years ago… He had held all the cards and hadn't been afraid to play them. Ready for anything, sure to succeed. Needless to say, it wasn't fun to be on the other side of the situation.

"What kind of conditions, Opal?" Artemis inquired, upon seeing that Root was almost ready to explode.

"I want full pardon," she replied. "as well as the reinstatement of my position at Koboi Laboratories. A couple thousand ingots of gold wouldn't hurt, either."

Root's complexion had long since turned violet. "And why under the Earth do you expect to get all this? As much as I hate to say it, Koboi, the council isn't likely to agree to your demands.

"Oh, but you're in charge of my case, aren't you commander? You can easily pardon my escape and past crimes. As for the gold, I sincerely doubt that Mr. Fowl here is lacking. And about my company…" she shrugged. "That's your problem."

The screen flashed once more, and Opal winked out of existence.

Artemis sighed and rubbed his temples gingerly. "We're going to have to be extremely careful with this. In my opinion, the best way to approach this is to return home and investigate the residue left behind by the explosion. Once Spiro is apprehended, we can place him under the _mesmer_ and discover Opal Koboi's whereabouts. We have neither the time nor the equipment to track her first; she will be, no doubt, heavily guarded, and will also expect an attack. It is only logical that we go after Jon first."

Holly envied his ability to be calm and logical, even though she knew he was a nervous wreck inside. The past week had been the first time he had been away from Ebony for more than a day, and this long-term separation was clearly wearing away at him. She broke the silence to divert his attention from their daughter's precarious predicament. "How do we find him?" she asked.

"First we go home," he replied, "and analyze the explosion site. We have to prove that Jon set it off, or else we will have no proof as to his whereabouts. I'm betting that he thought all evidence was destroyed, but even in large explosions not everything combusts. The cap I found should have enough fingerprints to confirm Jon's guilt, at which point we can involve the authorities. This might be more of a setback than anything, however, as it will be nearly impossible to _mesmer_ize him when he is under the power of the Irish government."

The others were silent for a moment, digesting this information. Silence. Prolonged, unendurable silence. Holly finally spoke, her tone weak, weary. Broken.

"Let's just go home, okay?" she said softly. "I don't think I can take this anymore…"

Artemis took her in his arms and held her tightly. "It's alright, Holly, don't worry. We'll find Ebony. We'll get her back."

She nodded, wiping the tears from her eyes. "You're right. I'm just making things worse by breaking down like this…" She took a deep, calming breath and looked into his eyes, expression set and determined. "Let's go."

Back at his lab in Fowl Manor, Artemis had the blasting cap under his microscope. He had dusted latent fingerprint powder on it a few moments before, using aluminum powder due to the dark color of the cap, and was attempting to retrieve any useful, incriminating evidence from it. So far he had found only partial prints, but he thought them defining enough.

The first print, clearly the thumb due to the opposable position, was a clear radial loop, while the print on the screen, Jon's from a previous file, was a tented arch. This frightened Artemis for a moment, before he realized that this could be Jon' left hand they were dealing with, not his right, his right being the hand Artemis had a full set of prints for. He continued snapping pictures of the prints until he had one of every finger that had touched the cap, all but the pinky on one hand and the middle finger on the other.

He fed the pictures into his laptop and compared them. What he saw gave him goose bumps. None of the prints matched. He cross-referenced them with each of the other prints in turn, until every print had been matched with every other one possible, but none were even remotely similar. He hacked into Foaly's system, not feeling like wasting the time to call the centaur and ask him to send it, and compared the prints he had collected with Opal Koboi's. Still, no match, which could only mean one thing: there was a third person involved in Koboi's plan.

He again cross-referenced the prints, this time through Foaly's entire database, but to no avail. He had feared this, it meant that another human was involved. He then ran it through the Interpol database, nothing again. By now he was very concerned. If the third member of Opal's 'team' hadn't even been added to the Interpol site, then they would be nigh impossible to apprehend.

He crossed his fingers and ran the prints through his own files. He was pleasantly surprised when a sharp 'ping' echoed throughout the room, signaling a match. Artemis was confused, who had he dealt with that Interpol hadn't?

He clicked the 'open' button and scanned the fingerprints, smiling. Each one was a perfect match. So who had Opal employed? He looked up at the name above the prints and drew in a sharp breath.

There, flickering on the screen, was the name Ebony Fowl.

In her 'office', a small, computerized shack in the middle of the Amazon Jungle, Opal Koboi giggled at the look on Artemis' face. She reached down and pulled a small four year old girl into her lap, smiling. "Look, child," she said softly. "The bad man found out that we set off that bomb. He'll capture Jon soon, and he'll come after us. What will we do then, child?"

Ebony answered in monotone, a hollow look in her eyes. "Destroy. Bad man might hurt us." A part of her mind rebelled against the words that she spoke, the words that found a way into her thoughts and forced their way out. A part of her remembered those words as her father's, and knew that the woman holding her was the reason the words had been first spoken. She attempted to break away from her stone prison, the place where her captor kept her imprisoned in her own mind… But it was to no avail. She was trapped, unable to break free from the oppressing presence that controlled her mind, body, and soul…

The pixie smiled approvingly, and Ebony felt the last of her control slipping. There was nothing she could do, she was now no more than a pawn, an instrument in a deranged fairy's twisted plan…

She felt herself spiraling into darkness, her last thought reverberating off the resonant walls of her now empty soul. 'I'm sorry, daddy…'

Artemis stormed through the hallways of the manor and unceremoniously threw open the door to the room where Foaly was attempting to catch a few hours of sleep. The handle hit the wall and made a loud slamming sound, startling Foaly from his restful state.

"Artemis?" he asked, clearly confused. "What-"

"No time, Foaly," Artemis interrupted. "Is there a way to counteract the _mesmer_ after it has been placed on someone?"

Foaly blinked, clearly startled by the question. "Well, the person who cast it must either remove the spell, be knocked unconscious, or die. Why?"

Artemis growled, startling the centaur. "Fowl, what under the earth-"

"As much as I would like to take the last option, Miss Koboi deserves a few centuries in jail… Some place much more secure than Howler's Peak," he added darkly.

Foaly was still bewildered. "What are you on about, Fowl?"

Artemis sighed and sat down in a chair near the bed. "I identified the fingerprints on the cap."

Foaly nodded, this was something he understood. "So that means you can take Jon to the authorities after he tells us where Opal is, right?"

Artemis shook his head. "The fingerprints weren't Jon's."

He blinked, this was certainly unexpected. "Well then whose were they?"

Artemis looked away, unable to meet his friend's eyes. "Ebony's."

Foaly blanched. "Are you sure? Maybe it was a mistake…"

Artemis finally snapped at this blatant disregard of fact. "Yes, Foaly, I'm sure!" he exclaimed. "Everyone has a different pattern on their hands, it can't be that easily faked! Every print matched! Every single one! It isn't coincidence! Somehow either Opal or Jon, I'm guessing Opal, got Ebony to bypass the security alarms and plant the bomb! You think I like this, Foaly? You think I'm trying to write my daughter off as a common criminal? It's obvious she was under outside influence, and that she was forced to do this somehow, whether by threat, blackmail, or the _mesmer_ I don't know. But the fact is that she _did_ do this. If you can't accept that, then I guess we'll have to do this without you. Don't let your guilt override your common sense. Don't look at me like that, I know you're feeling guilty that Opal kidnapped Ebony. How do you think I feel? If I hadn't discovered the people in the first place, if I had allowed you to wipe my memories, if I hadn't created the cube and gotten Jon angry with me… So many mistakes, so many other ways my life could have gone. So many ways that everyone could be safe now. But we can't go back in time, Foaly, we can't change the past. So accept it, and move on. There's nothing you can do about her being kidnapped now, but you can stop further harm from coming to her. We need you, Foaly. Are you with us?"

Foaly nodded, mind still reeling. Ebony's fate was surprising, but more so was the speech Artemis had just made. He had understood so completely, so correctly interpreted his emotions… He was so much wiser than he ought to be. He had grown up more quickly than he should have, more quickly than anyone could have ever imagined. He acted like and adult as a child, and possessed the maturity and wisdom of a wizened old man as an adult. He had experienced so much, seen more things than anyone ever should have seen… Yet he bore it all without complaint, accepting his fate for what it was. He was prepared to risk everything for the ones he loved…

He nodded again, more forcefully this time, and walked to Butler's room, side by side with Artemis. There was work to be done.

Okay, what do you think? My fav part was the Artemis/Foaly interaction… Yea, and for the last bit of my project I have to incorporate something to do with a gun… It's actually more complicated than that, but whatever. What I need to know is who do you want Jon to shoot? He's gonna aim for Opal (not telling why!). Should he hit her or should he miss and hit someone else, like Holly or Artemis? Please review, and place your vote!

Torina


	3. Elemental Magic

Disclaimer: See chapter one. I no own, you no sue!

A/N: … I got nothin'.

Review response time!

I should be Studying- Thanks! Updating, hope you like!

El Shabang- Thanks! Yea, you could say that…

VampirePeaches- O.o Is it possible to write a longer review than the one you sent? lol. I'm sorry that you don't like my spelling, but you're right, I'm American, so that's kinda the way I spell things… It would be confusing to do it any other way, I'm sorry. Besides, my computer says it's a spelling mistake whenever I copy something written that way into Word… So I really am sorry that you don't like the spelling, but there really isn't much I can do about it. Sorry! Heh, I had already written this chapter before I got your review (it was a project! I had no choice! lol) so the Jon accidentally shooting himself isn't gonna happen… But something eerily similar will. Lol. Scary, really. Oh well. Thanks again for reviewing, and hope you like this chapter!

hypergirl15- OMG! It's like you and VampirePeaches are psychic! Again, I wrote this before I got your review cuz I had to get it done, and here you are predicting a repeat of episode… What, twenty something? When I already have something so close it's scary in there! Lol. I also like your spelling of protection… Ekeltricity much? Lol. I noticed you changed your account to SnuffHiFoot… How do you change that? JW… lol. Well g2g… Bye!

**_IMPORTANT!!!!!_** I realize that you people who leave signed reviews think, oh, she can just get to my profile page and get my email and email me when she updates. I used to think that too, and maybe it's just because of my retarded comp that I can't, but I can't get to half of your emails and some people don't even have their email on their page. So please leave your email in your review, regardless of who you are (excluding you KK, I'm no that stupid) so I can email you when I update! Thankies!

Chapter Three: Elemental Magic

Opal smiled at the way things were progressing as she viewed the scene occurring at Fowl Manor through her spy cameras. Things were going exactly according to plan… She picked up her walkie talkie and said, "They're gone, Jon. You can come out now." She smiled as he stood, leaving the security of the bush he had been hiding behind, just as Artemis and crew walked around the corner. Their eyes widened and Holly tackled him, Root not far behind.

Butler came up and tied him tightly before hauling him to his feet. "Spiro," he said, his voice cold, emotionless. "How dare you show your face here. You have no idea what kind of trouble you are in now, do you?" His tone never lost it's stoicism, causing Jon to gulp in fear. How could he be so calm as he spoke of someone else's untimely demise?

Artemis came up and placed a hand on his shoulder. Butler looked at him quizzically as he shook his head. "Not now, Dom. There's no time. We'll bring him on the shuttle with us and deal with him later."

Butler slung him over his shoulder as they continued to walk towards the car, but Jon didn't like the emphasis Artemis had put on the word 'deal'.

They all climbed in, Jon securely between Root and Holly, Artemis next to Butler, who was driving, and Foaly in the trunk, and drove off to the shuttle port at Tara.

The terminal was mercifully empty when they arrived, and they immediately hauled Jon off to a questioning room. Holly put the _mesmer_ on him and asked, "What dealings have you had with one Opal Koboi?"

He answered a moment later, voice slurred. "You mean the pixie lady? Yea, I know her… She paid me a lot of money to take out the Fowl kid. I hate the guy, so it wasn't a big deal…"

"Where is she?" Root asked impatiently, intent on getting some answers.

"I dunno," he replied. "Somewhere out in the Amazon… By a really big river."

Artemis sighed. That helped a lot… Now they only had a whole stupid jungle to search! "Anything else?" he inquired, hoping to get a more specific answer.

"Yea-" Artemis' heart leapt- "there's a lot of trees around."

The group released a collective sigh. This was getting no where. "Do you have the coordinates?" Foaly asked, going out on a limb.

"Yea," Jon replied. "Let me think for a sec…"

They all looked at him incredulously and rolled their eyes. 'Uh… I don't know where it is, but here are the coordinates…' Smart. Really smart.

Jon told them where it was and they returned to the shuttle dock and took the pod that led them as close as possible to the coordinates Jon had given them. After a short trek through the jungle, Foaly told them that his newest gadget had sensed an invisible shack nearby that was exploding with electrical energy. He took out some kind of small laser and aimed it a few feet in front of him. The pink beam stopped abruptly, and the building returned to the visible spectrum.

Foaly pulled out his latest patent, an 'inflate-a-cage' and pushed a small button on it. It expanded and they locked Jon inside, a meter or so from the door.

Root took out a Neutrino and trained it on the door. With one quick blast it fell off it's hinges. They were in.

Opal wryly viewed the scene outside. _So much for structural integrity, _she thought sardonically as the fall of the door caused the house to shake a moment and no small amount of dust to fall from the ceiling.

She sat contentedly in her chair as she saw and heard the group come up the stairs and down the hallway, searching for her heat signature. She would let them find her, of course. How else would she reap the benefits of revenge?

Just as they were about to break down the door to her control room, she pushed a button and it slid open on it's own.

She turned to look at the group standing at the door, smiling slightly. "Welcome," she told them, "to my humble abode. What can I do for you? I have given you my conditions, and I happen to know they have not been met. So I am curious, to what can I attribute this unexpected visit?"

"Surrender, Koboi," Root snarled, "before you are met with a very _timely_ end."

Opal merely laughed. "And if I decline?"

Artemis, seeing a firefight pending and not wanting to take any chances that his daughter would get involved, intervened. "That is not why we are here, commander, and you know it."

Opal looked at him questioningly. "And what, pray tell, is?"

"I want my daughter and Captain Kelp to be released. Then you and Commander Root can argue all you want about what your… punishment will be."

The pixie in question laughed. "You're kidding, right? What's the difference between that and surrender?"  
"I stated it much more tactfully…" Artemis muttered.

Opal shook her head in amazement. "You really are too much. I thought you would have at least come with a plan… No, this will be all too easy." With these foreboding words, she snapped her fingers, disengaging the invisibility technology in the room, and pulled Ebony out from behind her. The others gasped, shocked at her appearance. Her eyes were blank, unseeing, her skin pale.

The pixie smiled and knelt down beside the child. "These are the bad people, understand?" The girl nodded her head, and Opal continued. "You know what to do, right?"

Before she could say another word, a voice rang out from the other side of the room. There was a deafening crashing sound, and they all turned to see a extremely ticked Jon Spiro holding a Neutrino, hands shaking with rage. "You tricked me," he said softly, accusation clear in his voice. "You let them take me. You betrayed me."

Opal raised an eyebrow. "And this surprises you, Jon? Really, I thought you were smarter than that." She smirked. "Then again, I suppose your gullibility helped my plans quite a bit, didn't it Jon?"

The man growled. "I'll show you," he snarled. "You'll get what you deserve."

The other went up. "And how do you plan on doing that, Jon? With that old laser? In case you didn't know, those type of things don't work in here. Really, did you think I'd just leave it lying around where you could get at it if it could harm me? Think about it, Jon. You may be stupid, but I most certainly am not."

"What do you mean they don't work?" Root cried. "We just blasted your door apart with one!"

Opal rolled her eyes. "Yes, commander. Now would you care to define the word 'inside' for me?"

Root bristled, and Jon decided to take advantage of the group's distraction. In a flash the Neutrino was on the ground and Spiro had drawn a pistol from his pocket. He pointed it at a very flabbergasted Opal Koboi, who attempted to jump out of the way in time. The bullet sliced through the air where Opal would have been had she not moved, but continued on, as there was nothing there to stop it. It kept going, going…

And struck a wide-eyed Ebony in the shoulder.

"EBONY!" Holly and Artemis called, rushing to her side, forgetting everything around them in their haste to aid their child. Foaly was shocked into silence, for once in his life, and Root had turned a frightening shade of ashen gray. Tears were streaming down Holly's cheeks as she repeatedly cried "HEAL! HEAL!" and they all watched helplessly as the blue sparks of magic poured from her body, but avoided the wound. They stared on in morbid fascination as the life drained from her body, her eyes looking up at them, crying silently for help.

She took one last, shuddering breath… And she was gone.

For a moment, all Holly could feel was shock… And then came the rage. Pure, unbridled anger possessed her, unlocking the ancient magic within her. A blue fire blazed around her, contrasting sharply with the green of her eyes, enveloping her body with it's might and strength. There were a million things she could have said, a million threats she could have uttered, but she chose three, simple words that sent shivers up the spines of those she was speaking to…

"You will pay."

Artemis sat on the floor, stunned, holding Ebony's lifeless form close. It wasn't possible. All these years, all the dangers, all the chances he could have lost his life… And it was now, now of all times, and she of all people, who had to suffer… All she had ever done was be related to him, but that had been enough to seal her fate. She was gone now. And Holly would soon follow. She was being foolish, standing up to Opal. She could never win, not without a weapon. It was hopeless.

But he was more than willing to go down with her.

He got up, gently lowering his daughter's prone body to the floor, and stood beside his wife. She was emitting more magical energies than he had ever thought possible, and had it been anyone but Holly he would have been horribly frightened by this unrestrained display of raw power.

A sword of fire appeared in her hand as everyone in the room looked on, amazed. Was it possible that she had gained control over the elemental powers that no fairy had harnessed for millennia?

At the moment, however, they all admitted that this line of questioning was irrelevant. The important thing was what to do about Opal…

The shocked and frightened pixie picked up the pistol Jon had let fall to the floor when the power of Holly's magic had sent him into a dead faint and fired. The others watched in shock as she merely waved a hand and conjured an icy shield, effectively forcing the bullet to rebound against its master.

Opal Koboi was dead, but the wrongs she had committed were not undone with her belated demise. There was still Jon to deal with, and Ebony… The thought of her contorted the features of all present- and conscious- into expressions of deep sadness and hurt. They had all loved the girl, in her own special way she had touched each of their lives irreversibly. She had meant the world to them, and now she was gone…

A small sound from behind them brought them from the reveries, and they turned to see a small girl, identical to the one before them, at the doorway, tears in her eyes. "Mommy?" she asked softly. "Daddy?"

They were to overcome with emotion to speak, they merely ran over to Ebony and embraced her tightly. "Don't you ever scare me like that again, you got that?" Artemis chastised the girl, clutching her and Holly to him as if his life depended on it.

The girl nodded. "What happened, Daddy? I remember the mean lady taking control of my mind, and then it was dark… I think she cloned me, Daddy, because I felt something evil in my mind, trying to take me over, but it didn't work, and then the voice said that it would have to find another body to inhabit because I was too difficult… Am I difficult, Daddy?" The innocence of her simple statement startled them into laughter, tears of joy streaming down their cheeks.

"Yes, baby, you are. And I'm glad."

The child beamed at her father's praise, hugging her family happily. They loved her, they had come to save her… They cared, and that was all that mattered. It was of no consequence that the voice had been stronger, that it had overpowered her long enough to extract all her memories and mannerisms, that she hadn't been strong enough to stop it… Everything was fine now, because her mommy and daddy were there to protect her. And it would stay that way.

Oh how wrong she was.

Yay! Another chappie done! Sorry it's so short, really… For the project I'm doing I added on a couple pages and concluded the story, but that isn't the way I want this story to go. I won't be over for a while, this fic will be around 30 chappies or so. I just might post slower later, since school starts tomorrow. Is that a cliffie? Kinda, I guess… But no one is in immediate danger, so it's okay, right? Heh… Well, I have to write the next chapter now… Bye!

Torina


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